Memories
by MerrytheAngel
Summary: AU Frodo discovers Saradoc to be an abusive husband and father, and vows to protect Merry. (sorry for sucky summary) WARNINGS: Abuse, dark thoughts, sexism. Take caution when reading! Don't forget to review! Thanks :)
1. Chapter 1

Hello! Thank you for reading this, please don't forget to leave a review! Helpful criticism is accepted!

WARNINGS: This story does contain abuse of spouse and children, if there are any problems reading such material, please do not read this story, thank you.

Memories

Year 1379 Shire Reckoning

Frodo was eleven when he first saw him hit her. It wasn't unusual for Uncle Saradoc and Aunt Esmeralda to get into arguments - they often did - but never once had Saradoc hit his wife. Frodo had been coming around the corner into the kitchen when he saw it. He immediately froze, afraid of being caught.

"I know what I'm doing! I don't need a woman to tell me how to do my job!" Saradoc was yelling. This must be something about his work keeping things in order at the Hall.

Frodo peeked around the corner to see what was going on. Esmeralda was trembling, but she wasn't crying. In fact, she had on the most impassive look on her face that Frodo had ever seen. Surely Esmeralda would do something about this! She wasn't the type of person to just stand there and take a beating-

"Of course, Saradoc, I'm sorry for suggesting anything."

Frodo gaped at his aunt. Why would she say that? And why is she acting so calm about this? A husband beating his wife wasn't a normal thing-

Unless it was.

Saradoc grunted, patted his wife's cheek, and began walking towards the doorway where Frodo was standing. The little lad immediately dashed off toward his room and away from the scene he'd just witnessed.

As he jumped on his bed, a million thoughts ran through the boy's mind. It all made sense as he thought about it. Esmeralda often spoke hesitantly around Saradoc, and bowed her head after addressing him or asking a question. When he was upset or frustrated, she would flinch when he got close. He must have been beating her for a while now, and no one even knew!

But now Frodo knew. And now that he knew, there had to be some way of stopping it. He couldn't let this go on. He should confront Saradoc. But would the older Hobbit even listen to him? He had to try; for Esmeralda.

Frodo considered telling his parents, but that would just cause trouble, and Frodo didn't want to cause any trouble that might come back and hurt his aunt. No, Frodo must do this alone.

The next morning, after first breakfast, Frodo went up to Saradoc's office door and knocked on it. "Yes?" He heard his uncle ask. Frodo opened the door and stuck his head in. "Ah, Frodo, my lad, come on in!" Good, he was in a good mood. That should help with what Frodo had to do.

"Good morning, Uncle." Frodo said kindly as he stepped up to the desk.

Saradoc smiled. "Is there something I can do for you?" Frodo nodded.

"May I ask you a question?" Frodo asked, staring at the ground, too afraid to look up.

"Of course, go on and have a seat." Saradoc motioned to the seat next to Frodo. Frodo sat, still not looking up. "What is it that you wish to know?"

Frodo gulped. Looking up into his uncle's grey eyes, he said, "Well, uh, last night I was going into the kitchen to get a snack, and I heard… something."

Saradoc's eyes hardened slightly, just slightly, and he pressed, "Heard what?"

Frodo fidgeted. "I heard a smack, and a cry, then some shouting… I saw you hit Aunt Esme. It scared me." Frodo looked away from Saradoc, but the elder's gaze never left Frodo.

Finally, Saradoc looked away, and sighed. "Frodo, let me explain something to you. There is an order to the Shire. Not everyone is the same. You know here at Brandy Hall that we have servants, right?"

Frodo nodded, unsure of where this was going. Saradoc continued, "Well, they come from a lower group of people. We are above them. Within the two classes, upper and lower, there is another way to classify betters: men and women."

He paused to see if Frodo was still with him. Frodo frowned, not really liking the sound of this, but nodded anyway to show that he understood. This was starting to sound worse than he'd thought it would.

"Men are stronger, faster, bigger, and smarter then women; therefore, we are better then them." Saradoc paused, smirking. "And sometimes, Frodo, the women need to remember their place. That is why I hit your aunt. You have nothing to worry about."

Frodo was still confused, but didn't say anything. Saradoc chuckled. "Ah, you'll understand when you're older." The older Hobbit ruffled Frodo's dark brown curls, then sent him out of the office.

Frodo had a lot of thinking to do that night.

TWO YEARS LATER

Frodo was now thirteen, and had figured out that he did not like this "classification system" among Hobbits. Ever since his parents died, he'd been spending more and more time with Aunt Esme. Ever since the talk he had with Saradoc, Frodo has paid more and more attention to his aunt then ever before.

Saradoc, ever since the talk, and even more so since Frodo's parents died, has been less and less wary around Frodo. In fact, one night, when Saradoc was really drunk, he had Frodo come into the room so he could show him how to discipline a woman.

It was horrible, watching Aunt Esme get hurt. It was when she looked at Frodo with tear-filled eyes that he knew he had to stop this madness. He threw himself in between his aunt and uncle, yelling at Saradoc to stop.

He did stop, looked from his wife to his nephew, and frowned. "Stupid boy, don't you have any respect?" he spat. Shooting a glare at his wife, but choosing to let whatever she'd done go, Saradoc focused on the thirteen year old before him. "Of course you don't! You've been spending too much time with her! You are just as weak as her!"

Before Frodo knew it, he was knocked aside by Saradoc's fist. Instant pain shot through his jaw and his head was pounding with the pain. There was no time to catch his breath, for Saradoc laid another punch into him on the other side.

Esmeralda was sobbing, and so was Frodo, but he knew better than to fight back. Never once had Saradoc hit him, but he should've known this would happen by protecting Esmeralda - and every punch and every kick that wasn't aimed at her was a blessing. Frodo knew he had done his job right now that she was out of range.

This night proved to be the first of many. Every time he saw Saradoc hit or try to hit his wife, Frodo got in the way and distracted him. These beatings became more frequent as old Gorbadoc's health lessened and Saradoc's rise to the title of Master more prominent. The title of Master only meant more of the work Saradoc was actually doing, and if the work he had been doing was stressful, then this only made things worse.

No matter how bad things got, Frodo thought, as long as he was there, it would be just him Saradoc had to beat. He had no way to his wife, and he wouldn't dare hit a servant, for fear of word getting around. And, most thankfully of all, he had no children he could beat and batter or raise up to be like him.


	2. Chapter 2

Memories

Year 1382 Shire Reckoning

Screaming, crying, praying, angry mutterings, soft words - all these Frodo heard from outside the labor room at Brandy Hall. He was sitting next to his uncle Bilbo, who was staring patiently at the door. Bilbo reached over and wrapped an arm around Frodo's shoulders. It was as Frodo looked up to meet his uncle's eyes that he realized Frodo had been quietly crying.

Just as Frodo reached up to wipe his eyes dry, Saradoc came into the room. He looked exhausted. His hair was a mess, his clothes were all wrinkled, and his eyes were red from crying. Frodo scooted over on the couch, thinking that Saradoc would want to sit.

Saradoc looked at Frodo, smiled kindly, ruffled his hair, and said, "No, Frodo, I think I need to be standing for this." The doctor had told Saradoc to leave the room as his wife gave birth.

Suddenly the screaming stopped, there was a moment of complete silence, and then, to Frodo's relief, a baby crying. Saradoc was the first let into the room as the nurses cleaned the mother and child. Frodo found himself smiling stupidly, and Bilbo noticed this.

"You're really excited about the new cousin." The older Hobbit noted. Frodo looked over at him, nodded, not saying anything, just smiling.

The nurse stepped into the room, smiled at Frodo, and asked, "Would you like to see the baby?" Frodo didn't even reply, just stood up and half-walked, half-ran to the doorway, trying not to knock over the poor nurse.

Bilbo smiled fondly as he walked after Frodo. The young fourteen year old just couldn't contain his excitement, and it reminded Bilbo of himself very much. The lad will be a good brother for the new babe.

When Frodo entered into the room, he saw Saradoc, a smile on his face, and Esmeralda, with a wide, beaming smile on her face and joyful tears in her eyes. She looked up and saw Frodo, and her smile immediately widened. She beckoned him close, and he went to stand next to her. She wrapped an arm around Frodo's waist in a side-hug, and motioned toward the little bundle in her arms, whispering, "It's a boy."

Frodo looked over the little bundle. He felt his own tears coming on as the babe curled up in his mother's arms, a small smile on his red face. The boy opened an eye slowly, looking up at the people around him as if to say, "Who are you?"

Saradoc smiled first at his son, then at Frodo. He leaned over his wife and child, ruffled Frodo's hair, and said, "You're going to be a great brother, Frodo. I can practically see how much you love this boy already!"

Frodo smiled. Him, a brother? He'd never thought of that. He had just thought a new cousin, but it did make sense. With him living at Brandy Hall, and there being no actual siblings, it would be Frodo's job to take that position.

Frodo reached down towards the baby, who grabbed onto his finger. "Hello, little one, I'm gonna be your brother, okay? I'm Frodo." He was crying as he said it. He could feel his aunt beaming at him.

"What do you think of the name Meriadoc, Frodo? That's what we've decided." Esmeralda said. Frodo looked over at her, still smiling.

"I think it's a wonderful name, but a bit long, don't you think, for a child?" He asked, looked over at the smiling boy. "We could give him a nickname, or just call him by a shorter version of his name, like you both do yours."

"And what would you suggest?" Saradoc asked, a smirk on his face.

Frodo grinned and looked up at his uncle. "How about Merry? Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck?" Saradoc laughed, nodding in agreement.

Esmeralda smiled softly as she watched her son, little hand still holding Frodo's finger tightly, and said, "I think Merry is a perfect name for him."

Merry had to be the cutest, and sweetest little Hobbit child Frodo had ever seen. The little lad seemed determined to pull every dark curl on Frodo's head. He was a smart boy, for someone only a few months old. He was fascinated by the different hair colors it seemed, for he had a head of little blond curls, but both of his parents had brown hair, and Frodo's was even darker than that.

Frodo had been sitting in one of the larger chairs, playing with Merry, when Saradoc burst into the room, dragging the smell of booze with him. He obviously was unaware of what room he was in, because he threw down a bunch of important-looking papers onto the floor.

"Esmeralda, where is my after-supper snack?!" He shouted, causing the giggling child on Frodo's lap to quiet down. Esmeralda, who was sitting nearby Frodo, tending to the fireplace, looked at her husband, eyes wide with fear.

"I shall get it immediately, love." She replied, standing and nearly running into the other room. Saradoc didn't even look at Frodo and Merry, just plopped himself down in the chair Esmeralda had been sitting in.

Esmeralda brought a plate of crackers and snack-cakes out in record time. After a heartbeat of a moment when Saradoc ate one of the cakes, Frodo thought they might be safe this time, and no violence would follow.

Frodo was wrong.

Saradoc shoved the snacks off the plate, shouting, "They are too stale! Are you trying to kill me? Disgusting!" Frodo was certain the food was not stale, but kept his mouth shut, for fear of the child he was holding.

"I am sorry, Saradoc, I didn't know-"

CRASH!

Absolute silence filled the room. Frodo's eyes moved from Saradoc's angry, red face, to his pale, trembling aunt, to the shards of a broken plate that had shattered about a foot away from Esmeralda. To Frodo's horror, Merry started to cry.

"Go to bed, Frodo." Saradoc ordered, not even looking at the teen. Frodo had been given this order many times before, but with Merry, he had to choice but to listen.

He hesitated for a moment, but Esmeralda's shaky, frightened voice pushed him on. "Take Merry, and go to bed, Frodo."

As tears that mirrored little Merry's welled up in his eyes, Frodo left the room. Once in his own bed, he curled up next to his baby cousin and cried his heart out. He had hoped that with Merry being born, Saradoc would control himself and not hurt anyone anymore. However, by the echoed sound of Esmeralda's cries, that proved to be a misguided hope.

Merry didn't understand what was going on. Within moments of being wrapped up and placed on the bed, the little golden-haired child was fast asleep, snuggling into Frodo for comfort from a horror he didn't know of.

Frodo sobbed even more as he thought of what might happen as little Merry got older. He had thought of Merry as a gift, a miracle, which he was, but he was also another target for Saradoc. Another victim for Frodo to protect. And protect he shall - Frodo can't let Merry be harmed.

"As long as I am here at Brandy Hall, Meriadoc Brandybuck, I will try my best to keep your father from harming you." It was as true as he could make it. He may not always be there when Saradoc attacks, but when he is there, no harm shall befall his cousin. As long as he is at Brandy Hall, and home when Saradoc is drunk, he will keep Merry safe. As his brother, that is his job.


End file.
